Shot in the Dark: A Peculiar Siduation
by PurpleThorn
Summary: Sara becomes the new Alice as she stumbles upon a new world, but this Wonderland is filled with dark creatures, terrible secrets, and one or two nerve wrecking incidents. Sara must pull herself from reality to help her new friends- Emma, Jake-Face and Inviza-Boy- from any danger that unmasks itself.
1. Family Vacation

"Camera bag?" My Dad turned to check I had the $180 camera with me. We stepped of the Ferry and onto the Welsh Island's dock. It would have been beautiful, if not for the fog that eerily wrapped around the small town.

"Yup," I gave a thumbs up and turned to see the empty boat leave.

"This place is so empty, I mean, we were the only ones on the boat." I nodded slowly at my sister, taking in the deserted streets.

"Ferry, not boat, it was a Ferry," I corrected without thinking about it. "The only thing I'm worried about is how long until I crack." She gave a wide-eyed look at the town. "Not like that, Stormy. I'm not going to turn into Jack The Ripper or something," I sighed.

"Priest Hole, Priest Hole, Priest Hole," My Mum said in her British accent, trying to find a sign to guide us.

"I meant from curiosity, I'm already trying not to walk away and well… explore," I always get in trouble because of my curiosity. "So how long are we staying here again?" Another thing I get in trouble for: How little I pay attention to people. Well, boring people.

"You weren't listening, were you, Sara?" She shook her head at me, her straight, brunette hair, flying in the mild wind.

"Does she ever?" My other sister, Nova came over, Because she was 10, she was just as bored as I looked. Her blonde hair was straight too, her eyes a pale blue, and if you were to look at the two of us we were different as day and night. (I was night). My extremely curly chocolate brown hair and eyes that managed to be just as dark blue as the oceans, pale skin and quirky smile that was always on my face, always set us drastically apart. "We're here for two weeks,".

"Thanks," I had a sinking feeling as I remembered my family was jam-packing everything into every little second, of every vacation.

"Is that it?" My Mother pointed at a tall church across town.

"It might be," My Dad said in his own British accent.

I sighed, "Be right back," I marched across the street and asked a woman for directions. Marching back I found my parents having the same conversation.

"It could be it," My Dad said.

"It's not," I said flatly, I was tired, Jet-lagged, and I wanted to explore. "It's over there, " I repeated the directions from the lady and after being interrogated and shunned for crossing the street without permission, we found ourselves in the only available room on this small, almost dead, island.

I wondered into the master bedroom where my parents were unpacking, and swung myself back and forth on the doorframe. "Can I explore?" My Mum looked up.

"Yes but don't go to far, and be back before dark," Wow, I was expecting a no.

"Well, that's the thing, I kinda want to explore… a path… or something," she put some of her T-shirts in a drawer.

"What path?" I stopped swinging for a second.

"I don't know, it was an example," She continued to unpack.

"Are you unpacked?"

"Yes," I had thrown my bag under my bed, I didn't care about putting things in drawers, and now my sisters had more room for their stuff.

"You didn't throw it under your bed?" Shoot.

"Nope," _I didn't throw it, per say._

"Well, Ok, but bring your sisters, and be back before nightfall," I swung myself into the master bedroom and grabbed 3 IPhones off the table which was being used as a charging station, and was out the door before my mother had turned around. _After nightfall it is._

* * *

"Sara!" Nova complained as I started to poke around the old, crumbled and creepy house. "You can't go in there! It could be dangerous!"

Sighing I turned around, and grabbed two IPhones out of my pocket, "If you let me poke around and take pictures, I'll let you use these," The IPhones, had been confiscated because of Nova's terrible behavior on the plane, we all paid for it. Both girls agreed happily and I crept around the house, my 42mm lens trained on anything that would interest me.

I found the back door open and strolled inside, I snapped a pic of moldy coats with a background of the sky, several of the unique banister, and some of the trees and plants growing inside the house itself. When I made it back outside to the front, the air was colder and it was close to sunset.

"Ready to go?" They groaned as they got up, and I took back the phones with some needed force. We walked along the long path and I stopped to take a picture of the orange sky reflected in the muddy bog water, something flew passed my head, making me crouch on instinct.

"My ball!" I turned to see Nova almost fall down on the muddy clumps of bog and bog water.

"You had a ball? Since when do you need a ball? And how did it go all the way out there? " I gave my camera to Stormy and carefully chose my path on the mounds sticking out of the water.

"It's for when I get bored on an island with nothing fun to do, and I tried to throw it at Stormy, duh" She replied. The way she said it almost made me turn around and make her get it herself. But instead did something far worse.

"I still have your phone, if I fall in, I can't guaranty it's safety," That shut her up. "What kind of ball was it? Forget it, but if it isn't floating, it's not coming back," I yelled, they were almost out of sight because of the fog, and I vowed to get revenge for getting my Dalek socks wet later. (The only item of clothing I care about getting them wet, and it's on my feet)

I came to a small island and almost waded to it. "If there are _ANY_ leaches," I muttered. I hate leaches, so much. I think spiders are adorable, snakes are way cool, rats and mice don't bother me in the slightest, I used to have a fear of needles, but now I'm over it. But I _HATE_ leaches.

Lucky for me the infernal ball had landed on the small island. I scooped down to pick it up, and that's when I saw it. The cave. "Hello?" I wasn't trying to get anyone's attention, I was actually trying to see how deep it went, it seemed to go pretty far according to my echo.

I stood up, the last rays of sunlight blinding me, and picked up some sticks. I couldn't explore the cave now, but I could try to later. Whamming sticks into the mounts of soil, I made a path of sorts, and when I made it to the path my sisters were curious.

"What are you doing?" Stormy handed me my camera and I gave Nova her ball.

"Experiment," I lied "I want to see how much the water rises every day from each point, you know to see if the water is level or not, and if it rises-"

"Yeah, yeah another boring experiment," I had a lot of "Boring Experiments" at home, including things that would make my Mum scream in horror and my dad shriek himself. I tensed up with the thought of having to stop them from ruining ANY of them.

"Let's go," Stormy said, sensing my mood and trying to get us home in one piece.

"Yeah, good idea,"

* * *

"I think I'll explore again," I was with my family the next afternoon, just walking upstairs to our room as our parents planned tomorrows activities. Today, I was pulled into a museum that had actually been the church my parents thought was our motel... If you can call it a motel.

My mother looked at me funny. "YOU want to go outside? Are you feeling ok?"

I smiled. If my parents made me go inside and settle down, and do something, I wouldn't want to go outside, but vise versa, if I was doing something outside and if my parents made me go inside, I just wouldn't want to.

"Yeah I just found a house and I want to take pictures." My dad had me a stern look.

"Sara, that's illegal," I tried to keep my temper when he interrupted me. "Even if it is in ruins, it's still illegal,"

I sighed, "Ok, then I'll take pictures of it from the path." This seemed to satisfy him and he nodded, my Mum agreed and I brought my camera along in a waterproof case, just to take pictures of the cave, which I had learned that morning was called a cairn.

I hopped on the same mounts the sticks were, carefully trying not to get impaled. When I reached the island, the midday sun was covered by clouds and it seemed dim and dreary, I loved it. I love dim and dreary days, almost as much as I like starry nights.

I army crawled through the entrance of the strange shaped grave (I also learned this in the museum that morning) and into a cavern with a low ceiling. With my flashlight, I saw makings at the back of the wall, none of which I could read, so I snapped a picture with both my IPhone and my camera.

I took a few more pictures in the cave by lighting stuff up with my flashlight (I wouldn't recremend doing this without experience or it might turn out terrible).

Growing bored of the cairn, I put my camera away and started climbing out.

"Emma's coming! _Hide, Olive!_" Someone whispered from behind the Cairns entrance, right above me, or so it felt.

I slid back farther into the cairn's mouth, and hid in the shallow shadows below the entrance. "Claire! Shut up, you'll give us both away!" Another girls voice answered.

"Actually, there are three of us here," I heard a third voice, a guy about my age... Judging on his voice.

"_I CAN HEAR YOU!"_ A fourth voice came from farther away. Being slightly scared of strangers when I'm shooting pictures, I snuggled deeper in the crevasse I was in.

"_Millard_," a harsh but silent whisper came from the first girl... Claire.

I heard footsteps and risked inching to the cavern. I was almost halfway when a shadow passed the entrance.

"HA HA GOT YOU! _AND YOU TOO CLAIRE!_" Emma's cries bounced around the cave a bit, putting me on edge.

"MILLARD'S HERE TOO!" There was a slight scuffle.

"That's it, I am _NEVER_ hiding with you again," Millard answered.

"You _ALWAYS_ say that when we play hide and seek," Olive pointed out.

"Isn't it time for lunch, or dinner? I think I'll go check," I expected a shadow blocking the light in the cave for a second, but nothing happened. I heard the footsteps come by then recede.

"We should go, too," Olive, Claire and Emma's shadows moved across the mouth and I climbed forward again.

Slowly, I poked my head out of the Cairn's entrance and ducked behind the outside. I sucked in a breath and had a single laugh, before facing the entrance of the cave and snapping a shot.

After taking a picture of the blazing sun through the treetops, I strapped my camera bag up and slung it over my shoulder. Determined now to follow those kids. The sun would be out for probably another hour and a half, maybe two hours, but I leaped from mound to mound, letting the fresh footsteps guide me to the path. I saw the wet shoe shaped prints headed to the abandoned house, and followed them quickly and quietly.


	2. Undercover

I noticed the lawn first. "How did you get like this?" I asked it, not really caring it was inanimate object. The lawn was completely trimmed, everything was nice and orderly, so completely different then what it was yesterday. _Strange._

All the trees were perfect, not even a branch was out of place, I strolled down the path, making sure to keep in the shadows, hopefully out of sight.

The house was in perfect condition, the trees that had been growing inside had completely disappeared. Tall windows took their place, white columns and a grand white house stood completely intact.

"This didn't happen overnight," I swallowed. "Am I dreaming?" No, your dreams make even less sense then this does, so this can't be a dream. I brushed a left to make sure it was real. "Not a dream, or my imagination, I'm certainly not dead, that I'm sure of, and so..." I trailed off the two other options seeming almost impossible.

"When you've deducted the improbable, then whatever remains, no matter how impossible, must be the truth," Quoting the great detective himself.

I crept across the yard into where I remembered a slight blind spot was. "So I've ether traveled through time, gone to a parallel demention or..." The last made me feel sane for believing. "Magic," I did believe in the most childish of things, dragons, fairies, I'll even take trolls, but magic, even in his situation, seemed very unlikely. "Time travel it is then,".

I tucked my hair behind my ear and peered into the window next to me. It was extremely cozy; six fancy, fluffy chairs faced a fireplace, old pictures and portraits hung on walls over a new patterned wallpaper. All the chairs were taken, except for one, and I could hear a meeting of some kind taking place.

"I don't know, I never saw them!" Emma exclaimed, and I shivered when I realized they were talking about me.

"I have been told this, but I need a description!" A lady in the corner with a beak-like nose replied. "Did any of you see them?" Emma, Olive, Claire, and a sandy haired boy shook their heads.

"I'm going to go make tea, so I'll be right back," the empty chair moved a bit and I peaked in a bit more. The door opened and closed on it's own, leaving me in confusion.

"Curiouser and curiouser," I quoted one of my favorite books. Then checked to see where the sun was, I would have to leave in about an hour to get to the room before dark.

"Fine, then I supose there is no need in keeping you, however, We need to gather everyone here to tell them." The lady sent the sandy blonde kid-Jacob- to gather them.

I sighed, maybe this was completely ordinary, maybe my mind had played tricks on me and the house was like this the entire time, or maybe it was a different house I saw, hidden by the forest practically surrounding the house. The kids had gathered into the room now, and just out of spite, I took a picture of everyone.

With a false security I looked at the picture and noticed the odd clothes everyone was wearing. Everyone was dressed as if they were going to a 1940's reenactment fair. Except for one small boy who was dressed as a sir. Literally, I giggled a bit as I saw this, he had a monocle and top hat, as well as a waist coat and I was surprised he didn't have a drawn on mustache. _I actually like this kid, he had potential._

"I have some terrible news, children." I turned, my attention now on the people inside. Terrible news= interested Sara. "A wright was heard inside the entrance to loop, and we have to be alert and cautious at all times now understand?" A few of the children nodded and a thought struck me. _Was she their nanny? To many kids that looked too different to be siblings. Nanny... Stay at home Nanny? No, they treated her as a superior, like a caretaker... To few Nannies have that control over their kids... Teacher? No, the house is too big and too comfy to be soully for teaching... Headmistress? This idea was plausible._

"This means no going to the village, at all, got it? Not even with a friend. We will have Jacob on guard duty, and two of you will be on watch at all times." A collective groan came from the kids and I realized it was my fault they were on lock down. If I came clean, and told them about being in the cairn, and trespassing (although if I'm lucky I wouldn't need to mention that) maybe these kids would be saved from boredom, however, this lady dosen't look like she would take a simple: OOPSIE! And would try to talk to my parents, and if they found out...

"It's rude to eavesdrop," a voice from behind me made my body tense and I tried to find out who the voice belonged to. _M, Milfred, Miles, Merica, Monkey, Mattress. **YOU'RE NOT HELPING! **Musterd, erd...erd... MILLARD!_ Now that I had figured it out I tried to run, but a hand clamped around my mouth and and arm held my stomach. I struggled with the arms holding me, but my curiosity held a majority of my strength, skill, and my will to get free. _Idiot._

Our scuffle had made enough noise to attract attention, so all the boys and girls inside were watching, a few ran out of the room, probably to join my captor. _Mom and Dad are going to be furious, if I get caught I'll be late!_

I kicked my opponents foot and leaned my upper body forward, pulling Millard over my shoulder and flipping him on his back. "Nice meeting you, jerk," I heard a door slam and bolted for the road. The Doctor would be disappointed in you. I had a burst of speed that took me away from the not-so abandoned house. There's a Dalek behind you. I managed to go faster, my motivation now being not to be shot in the back by a laser that only existed in my head.

I ducked behind a tree, and thought of all the stuff I know about time travel.

_Ok, so time travel:_

_The TARDIS works when The Doctor goes inside and pulls a lever, leaves and **bam,** easy time travel. _

_the only thing I've been inside is the cairn._

_The weather was different when I came out... easy time travel. _

"Time travel... how wonderfully impossible," I smiled

"Who are you?" I felt myself get pushed against the trunk, but the person pinning me down wasn't there, but he was there...

"You're invisible," I was more interested then scared. "No wonder I couldn't see you before... So... you must be Millard, right?" His breathing became uneven. "Jeez, calm down I'm not going to hurt anyone," The grip on my shoulder relaxed, then tightened until it hurt.

"I know what your trying to do, you filthy wright," I was slightly antsy now, but I didn't move a muscle.

"Excuse me? I've been called worse," I felt more pain as the grip tightened. "LET ME GO!" I jerked my shoulder forward, only to get it slammed into the tree. "Where am I?" _Don't hurt him, you know what happens when you start to retaliate. _

"You're not in the position of asking the questions here, I am, so _WHO ARE YOU,_" I almost smiled, but that would have given me away.

"Miley Cyrus," I burst out laughing and took a deep breath. "Ok, I'm Sara," Before he could react, I grabbed his arms, gripped them tight, twisted them so he would have to turn around or have two broken hands, traded places with him and pinned him against the tree. "So, can I ask questions now?"

"Wha-Where did you learn to do that?" I smiled

"Oh, I didn't, I just thought of it," I took a step closer, pinning him better then he had done to me. "So where am I? Oh wait, _When_ am I?" I could tell he was deciding weather or not to trust me. "Ok, so maybe I was poking around your house, but I was curious, and frankly, that's barely a reason to slam someone into a tree."

"You seriously don't know, do you?"

"I've figured one or two things out if you hadn't noticed... but yeah, I really don't know,"

"You're strangely calm about this," I shrugged. "Ok, fine, but prove that you are not a wright,"

"What even is a wright!" I yelled.

"How old are you?"

"16, wait no, my birthday was a month ago so 17,"

"Come with me," I raised my eyebrow as if to say: _Um, I'm still pinning you down and I'm not letting you go. _"Please?"

I let go, "Ok, Inviza-Boy, show me the way," I felt his grip on my arm.

"This way," He directed me back to the house, but a crowed had gathered out front.

"MR. NULLINGS," The bird lady exclaimed when we marched up the pathway. "I TOLD YOU NOT TO GO AFTER HER!"

"I know, head Mistress," He let go of my arm. "I apologize," then he announced "She's not a wright, I've tested her and her eyes are real," Emma glared, and I felt like glaring back, but withheld it in case it would affect the answers I would get.

"Are you sure," the lady was giving me a searching look and I really didn't like it.

"Yes," he nodded or at least, I believe he did.


	3. Answers

"You must have a lot of questions, come with me and I will explain." I followed her into the house, and into an old classroom. "Take a seat," I sat down in my usual abnormal sitting position and lay my hands on the desk. "What do you know, and what do you need to know," she said simply.

"I know that everyone here is different, because if you weren't used to strange children, and invisible boy would have probably at least startled you, even if you had know he was invisible for a long time. I know that the cairn is some kinda of fluxing time entrance that separates whenever we are now to the present. I know that someone or something is looking for you and these kids, because you were scared and even suspicious of a teenage girl. The rest I would like to know," I watched her walk around the desk and she looked at me oddly.

"You are very observant, I will admit that," she nodded. "You are right, about all three things, we are being hunted down, by creatures called Hallows, and their evolved 'friends' the wrights." I was completely focused on the lady before me, and the answers that were coming.

"Wrights are evolved Hollows, hollows after eating enough perculiars, will turn into wrights, and wrights can enter time loops."

"Time loops?" Time has always intrigued me, basically if you had a question about time, including history, or maybe a classic book novel, I was your girl. "Time loops are just a theory that time can sometimes be looped into itself, making a certain amount of time will repeat itself... Are you saying this isn't just a theory? That this could actually happen? I'm in one aren't I? That's why I can time travel, I'm not as much time traveling as much as teleporting to a continuing loop of time." She nodded.

"Correct, but do you know how it started, the time loop?" I took a moment to think.

"It would take momumental force just to move time, and then even more so to bend it into a shape where it can repeat itself without affecting the time it left behind, all without causing rips in time and space..." I trailed off. "How DID this time loop start? And are there more?"

"You really are bright," I smiled. "These children were in danger, and I looped time to prevent the death of everyone here,"

"YOU looped time? How?"

"I am a ymbrane, I guard over these children and protect there health, and in doing so I have skills of my own, I can turn into a bird and I have control of time," this seemed alittle far fetched but I had no reason not to believe her.

"What is a perculiar?" I remembered something she had said before.

"A peculiar is a species of human, basically..." She trailed off for a second.

"Then what are they really? I don't want basic, I want the whole answer," I leaned forward on the desk. "I've believed you so far, you can tell me the rest," she looked at me with the stare that felt like she was looking at my soul.

"There are to species of humans, the normal, homosapien kind of Human and then there are peculiars." I expected some kind of scientific name for peculiars, but none came. "Peculiars are different genetically, and because of that, it is possible for them to do things others cannot," I nodded slowly.

"Which is why you are protecting them, you're saving them from extinction from wrights or hollows, correct?"

"Correct,"

"What can these kids do?" She hesitated, the went to a bookshelf and tried to get a large book out. Without asking I stood up and grabbed the book out myself, it was heavy, but my school books were heavier.

"Thank you...," I realized she was asking for a name.

"Sara, Sara Sterling," I lay the book on the table and she opened it to a page near the middle. It was then when I realized what the heavy book was; it was a scrapbook.

"Well then miss Sterling, what do you think of this?" She took out a few pictures as I decided to looked around the room a bit.

I looked at the pictures, there was a blonde boy holding a rock in one hand, a bunch clothes holding themselves up- Millard, a girl levitating-Olive, and a girl holding fire in her hands-Emma.

"You don't believe in this." She stated.

"I believe the story," I said.

"But not the pictures, why?"

"The girl Is floating, or so it apears, however,use a little water for the shadow and make her step back on the dirt pile behind and it would have that effect. The picture of Millard could have been burned to not show a face. the rock in the next picture looks to be foam, his hand lines up with the ground there, the rock could easily could be there and the boy could be holding his hand out as if to hold it, and the shadow could be burned too." I replied. "I do believe you, but my brain would never believe these pictures."

"Fairly so," she nodded.

"My parents will be getting worried soon, I should probably leave," I decided I would come back tomorrow and find out more.

"Of course, I'll have escort you to the loop entrance," I was about to tell her I didn't need an escort when she added:"Considering he's already here," a chair wobbled and I grinned.

"Busted," I crossed my arms.

"Busted indeed, How many times have I told you not to eavesdrop? If I catch you doing again, I will punish you dearly," I felt bad for being so smug.

"It's ok, he didn't hurt anyone, and I'm sure the only one who learned something here was me," she turned to me and glared.

"I will deal with him however I chose, and though I admire your bravery for standing up for him, I suggest you stay out of this," My frist instinct was a snide remark, my second was to cause her pain, I ignored these with effort and instead answered politely.

"Of course," I could tell she would make me call her some posh name or something, so I interrupted her before she could speak. "Come on Invisa-Boy, let's get going," I was out the door before anyone could say anything.

* * *

"Are you ok?" Millard's footsteps joined mine.

I crossed my arms again, "I'm not the kind of person who deals with getting yelled at well," I replied. "And I'm never ok with being yelled at by someone I just met," I treat people the way they treat me, if you were to yell at me when you first meet me, we would have a rocky relationship, and it was hard putting this aside for the "Headmistress".

"Thanks for standing up for me," he put a hand on my shoulder, probably trying to calm me down.

"Yeah, you're welcome." We walked in silence the rest of the way.

"I like your jacket, it's very... bright..." I smiled a bit.

"It's a jacket that's supposed to look like my favorite superhero: Wally West, The Flash," I probably received a blank look, so I explain a little farther. "It's a guy with super speed,"

"Right... Well... Bye!" I heard his footsteps start to run away.

"I'll see you tomorrow!" I called and after checking for my camera, and my IPhone, crawled inside the cairn.

* * *

"Why were you late?!" My Dad yelled as I walked through the door.

I froze, realizing that I hadn't come up with an excuse. "I was at a beach... And I lost track of time," I would have to add on to this, so I didn't stop talking, "when I did leave the beach the sun was already setting, so I wasn't really able to get here fast enough, I guess," He crossed his arms.

"You could have called," I hadn't thought of this... but luckily, I had a stroke of genius at that very moment.

"Not really, I don't have international data remember? I can't call or text outside of America," I congratulated myself on my quick thinking a little too quickly.

"You know your phone was confiscated, but you still decided to use it today. Why?" My mind turned to slow moving mush, before returning to the fast moving pace that saved me.

"I wanted to take pictures I could send to people when we get back to America. You know, instantly, without having to wait to get home and download the picture to my laptop, and then my phone, just so I can send them." This seemed to be the right answer.

"Hmm, fine, but if you take your phone again, I'll stop you from taking your little photography trips, got it?" My blood ran cold. _Stop me from going back?_

"Yeah I understand," my voice had dropped a few octaves and my dad must have noticed the power of the threat had over me. He would probably use it again. "I understand completely,".

I jumped into bed with my clothes still on, thinking of questions and daydreaming of just being there. My eyes felt heavy and soon I drifted off...


End file.
